Accessibility

Quebec system short listed for paratransit program

Quebec’s Société de transport de Laval’s (STL) operational support and user information system for paratransit (SAIEV) has passed all the primary steps and is now a finalist for the 2013 Quebec Public Administration Institute Excellence award in the "e-Government" category.

"Behind all the technology and the complex systems that are designed to send real time information to clients and drivers of the SAEIV system, it is the human solution first and foremost that has allowed us to improve quality of life and increase the social inclusion of people who rely on adapted transportation," said Sylvain Yelle, sr. director, operations.

SAEIV allowed the STL to make major advances in increased efficiency through real-time regulation, route optimization, calling clients the evening before to confirm travel plans and to re-schedule cancelled pickups as well as by sending automated calls to announce the impending arrival of the vehicle.

Since its implementation in November 2012, the system has reduced stoppage time by 30% by sending a notification call to clients waiting for the bus. Same day cancellations were also reduced by making the adapted transportation system even more efficient. These are significant advances for the STL, making them better able to meet punctuality objectives and by reducing waiting times while improving performance.

Last May, the STL took home an excellence award for the SAEIV program from the Quebec Transportations Association who awarded them the 2013 Coup de cœur prize. The Canadian Urban Transit Association also awarded the STL with the Innovation Award at their annual congress in June.

The STL will find out whether it has won the AIPQ's excellence award for developing and implementing the SAEIV system in late November.

Transportation America’s 5-year, $208 million contract states the county will withhold the disputed amounts from the company while the dispute is resolved. But, transit officials say they are conceding to TA attorneys who claim the contract language is ambiguous and letting the company hold the cash.

According to police, the Hampton Roads Transit bus driver saw the person traveling on the street in the direction of the bus and swerved at the last second to avoid a direct collision with the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair struck the right side of the bus.

The Winnipeg Taxi Board initially denied Sunshine Transit Services an accessible limousine license in 2012. With the signing of the Accessibility for Manitobans Act, help from the Manitoba League of Persons with Disabilities and the Public Interest Law Center, Manitoba's one and only accessible limo license was granted to Sunshine Transit Services in August 2014.

The goal of the updated process is to ensure that only persons who meet the regulatory criteria are regarded as eligible for paratransit service, making this vital service more efficient. Eligibility is based on limitations to an individual’s abilities, not just the presence of a disability.